Boston College Women’s Lacrosse Gets Right Back to Business

The Boston College women’s lacrosse team finally returned to action today for their first game in just under a year. BC’s last match was against Hofstra on March 11, 2020, a game which the Eagles won by a score of 20-10. And today, against Albany, the Eagles picked up right where they left off with a 22-12 victory.

Since last season was cancelled after just 7 games, this is essentially BC’s first season post- Sam Apuzzo, Kenzie Kent, and Dempsey Arsenault. And while those losses will certainly be felt, the Eagles still have Cara Urbank, Jenn Medjid, goalie Rachel Hall, and superstar transfer Charlotte North.

The Eagles also have a strong freshman class. Belle Smith was the top ranked midfielder in this recruiting class and was Inside Lacrosse’s #2 prospect overall. Smith won a gold medal with the USA 19 team and is an accomplished volleyball and basketball player in addition to being a field hockey star. Midfielder Andrea Reynolds was Inside Lacrosse’s #11 recruit in the country. And Annabelle Hasselbeck (daughter of BC football standout Matt Hasselbeck BC field hockey alumna Sarah [Egnaczyk] Hasselbeck), was a top 50 recruit.

So while BC might not be poised to go undefeated in the regular season this year, they are still likely to be very good.

Today’s game was close for the first 8 minutes or so, but once BC started to run away with it, the goals kept coming. Charlotte North was the difference maker for BC on offense with 8 goals, 1 assist, and 6 draw control wins. Cara Urbank also picked up a hat trick with 4 goals of her own. Other Eagles goals came from Belle Smith (2), Phoebe Day (2), Jenn Medjid (2), Annie Walsh (1), Annabelle Hasselbeck (1), Cassidy Weeks (1), and Kit Arrix (1).

On the goaltending side of things, Rachel Hall made 5 saves on 14 shots and Abbey Ngai made 1 save on 4 shots after entering late in the game. Defensively the Eagles also completed 13 clears and forced 8 turnovers.

Across the board, the Eagles looked well prepared and well conditioned, without any evidence of tiredness or sloppiness as the game went on. The Eagles also beat Albany by a large margin when they last met in 2019, so although this win was dominant, it doesn’t necessarily predict how the team with handle tougher competitors. We’ll soon have the answer to that question however, as the Eagles are set to face #16 USC this Friday.